Mike Tomlin made it simple:
Good or bad, right or wrong, the buck stops here. Give him credit when the Steelers win; give him heck when they lose.

"I am not going to come in here on a weekly basis and state that," Tomlin said Tuesday during his news conference. "I expect that to be a given."

Normally content to keep his critical thoughts private, Tomlin allowed more of his personality to emerge and cast a skeptical eye toward the Steelers' 19-16 overtime loss to the New York Jets.

Tomlin broke new ground with the media when discussing the play of quarterback Ben Roethlisberger.
While describing Roethlisberger as an improvisational playmaker, Tomlin was unusually direct in his observations of Roethlisberger's decision-making ability.

Roethlisberger, who has a habit of throwing interceptions instead of throwing the ball away, was intercepted once and lost a fumble against the Jets.

He was also sacked seven times, raising the question if he is releasing the ball quick enough in certain situations.

"There is a fine line between being brilliant and being an idiot," Tomlin said. (gotta love the honesty)

Tomlin didn't stop there.

"We live in our hopes and not out fears," Tomlin continued. "He understands that. He knows he has to protect the football. At the same time, at times he has to lead us to victory. He does that more than he doesn't."

Tomlin didn't stop with his quarterback. He addressed several missed tackles by his top-rated defense against Jets running back Thomas Jones and promised that it wouldn't happen again.

"I don't hope it is a one-game thing. I expect it to be a one-game thing," Tomlin said.

Tomlin was brutally direct. He said his defensive players were going to attend Football 101 and practice the proper way to run to the football and being more balanced when they tackle.

Tomlin also discussed moving cornerback Deshea Townsend to safety for the injured Troy Polamalu tomorrow night against the Miami Dolphins at Heinz Field. Tyrone Carter is expected to start, but Townsend, who practiced at safety during training camp, will provide more experience with veteran Ryan Clark sidelined for the rest of the season.

Jets quarterback Kellen Clemens said he keyed off the aggressive play of the Steelers' safeties on a 56-yard flea-flicker pass in the first quarter. Second-year safety Anthony Smith, filling in for Clark, was out of position on the play.

Each week, Tomlin has said the Steelers are striving to become a great team. It's clear by his most recent comments that he doesn't believe they belong in that category.

"Every time you take the field you have to come to play, and that is what great teams do and it is our desire to be great," Tomlin said. "What do you do when you have a great performance? You better be ready to back it up and show it again the following week."

__________________"We're not going to turn our backs on him," Ward said. "We're going to treat him like our brother. We're going to accept him back and be very supportive of him and help him get through this. In this locker room, he's still our quarterback."

He should have mentioned the fact that our offensive line is a complete joke. They don't give Ben a second to throw the ball. Immeditely after the ball is snapped he has to start scrambling. Hey Faneca, what's that you were saying about being a pro bowler and needing to be paid more as a guard for how good you are?? How about keeping your quarterback from becoming toast on at least maybe 2 out of 10 pass plays. Ben is the only reason we're 7-3. He has to run for his life and is still able to make plays.

__________________
You play smart, you stay focused, and above it all, you play physical!!

This is why I am becoming such a big fan of Mike Tomlin. He ain't going to sugarcoat it for you like some people.

Quote:

"I don't hope it is a one-game thing. I expect it to be a one-game thing," Tomlin said.

Tomlin isn't fooling around. I expect the entire Steelers team, both sides of the ball, to play better tomorrow night. I expect Miami to get their asses kicked so bad they can't sit down for the flight back to Miami.

It's not Tomlin that's the problem. I've wanted to see that out of him since the loss to the Cards....Yes I've said i wished he'd show more emotion on the sideline....but it's clear that he's in charge.

I don't know...the attitude from the players seems to be the problem now. The only way to put this behind us and boost moral is to string together some wins. It starts Monday night against the Dolphins.

I like what I'm reading...But talk is cheap really....I want to see results....Now in the next couple the pass protection, the tackling and kick coverage units all improve then I know if Tomlin is for real.....